Why won't these &#*%* mice die?!?!?!?!

[Go4urs]

Hi everyone - I do not have chickens, but my neighbor did so I hope I'm not out of line joining this forum. The neighborhood convinced me that the chickens were the source of the mice than invaded the neighborhood. I barely care from whence they came - but they've arrived.

1. Please understand that for circumstances that are too long and complicated too explain here that elimination of the mice is the #1 priority. Not human lives , not property - nothing matters more. I'm looking of the last options before I have to bulldoze the property.

I did not find out there were mice on the property until 18 days after they arrived. From what I've learned that was enough time for them to have 9-15 more. I'm told they are in the walls and will remain. That the best the professionals can do is to REDUCE the numbers. But which ever ones are left can have 9-15 babies every 15-21 days!!!! They are masters of this game. They take dumps on the 3-4 brands of glue traps. They largely ignore the various brands of bait - some coated w/ peanut butter and some not. I bought bacon for the 1st time in my life for these guests. I now have 6 cameras on the property. Once we determine their paths we eventually lined the entire area with various traps; they find another way. Each time. I would be fascinated and impressed except for the extreme detrimental hardship this has had.

So, I'm talking to a fireman. He explains how many people they cart out b/c of carbon monoxide. That starts my mind to rolling. I research CO & find out thousands of mice are killed this way each year. 1st idea was to back a car up to the property and run a hose in the house from the tailpipe. Getting a car to the house will be v. difficult (but not impossible should that be necessary), so we discussed other methods and I settled on a generator. I went to Home Depot & rented the Honda E8 3000C. The property is relatively small - three stories 300-500sq feet per floor so, approx 1350 total. I leave the generator in the basement w maybe 3/4 tank of gas. The instructions said it would run up to 9 hours on a full tank. A couple of hours later I see mice on the camera.

WTF? Try a few more things and a few hundred to thousand dollar later I rented two more generators and put on one the lower floor, one on the main floor. Opened all the doors and filled both generators with gas & let them run. I left the choke out on one and it ran out of gas after a few hours. Ran in, grabbed, dragged it outside, filled it with gas and pushed it back in. It ran at least another 5 hours. Few hours later the mice come out!!!! WTF. I've read - CO def kills mice. Sure they were in the walls in their nest, nestled in the insulation. Two fireman are confused - saying people die in hours on just failed pilot light or whatever.

The property isn't particularly drafty. Is the generator not emitting enough CO? How is that possible? Is there something else I can use? I heard newer cars don't even produce as much CO as older ones; could this be the same w generators?

I want to drill holes in the walls on each floor but can't think of how to get CO to run through a hose to the holes. I can't hook a hose to the generator, right? If I use the tailpipe option - how long should the car run and how do I get multiple hoses hooked up to the same contraption to run one hose on each floor and to have a couple hoses taped to the holes that I'll drill in the walls. What is the best producer of CO. Should I do something to the hot water heater or stove to duplicate the conditions that kill people. How can a stove kill a person, but two generators can't kill mice!?!?! Do I just need to get more? Let me run longer? Get older generators? Use something else?

And what am I hearing about anhydrous ammonia & is there anyway to get any delivered to a residential area?

But seriously, these mice need to die, especially before the newest litter has its litter.

I think these are field mice - grey w/ a tail. I've read dozens or articles, and even more reviews. Some people swear by products that my mice laugh at.

Any reasonable sensible more likely than not, idea that will work will be appreciated. I need proven methods. Clearly no idea too outlandish. What say you?

 

[Weeg]

You need to take away there food source, fill in the mouse holes, take away water, and get rid of as many places to hide as possible. I LOVE the Multicatch live trap! I caught at least 10 rats a day and other have caught more! Its a really good trap! Electric traps are also really good, do some research on those as well. Otherwise, this article is the best article to get rid of rats and mice, hope you find it helpful! https://backyardchickenproject.com/how-to-get-rid-of-rats-in-the-chicken-coop-the-definitive-guide/

 

[abpatchy]

I had mice in my coop. Always just saw a few. I tried different traps. They were there when I took over the coop. The previous owner didn't want to hurt them. That says it all!
Then one day I walked in later in the evening than ususal. There were mice everywhere! So what I started doing, I took the chicken feed away at night. And put out professional grade rat and mouse poison. They were hungry, so they ate it. A lot of it! I could not keep up with putting out fresh. At first no reaction as this stuff needs time to work. But it got less and less... and eventually they were gone. I guess they didn't like the fact, that so many of them died and left. I have not seen a mouse for several weeks now ( I am soooo happy!!! ) I think what did the trick is the food gone and poison in it's place.
Of course that is hard for you since they are not your chickens. Have you thought of 1 or 2 cats?
Good luck! Hope you'll find a way!

 

[Callender Girl]

I totally understand your frustration. My 106-year-old farmhouse is a mouse magnet in the fall when the surrounding fields are harvested and the weather is cooling. Everything I value is stored in sealed containers. No food is allowed on the second floor, nothing edible (unless you count bar soap and pieces of unappetizing plastic) is ever left out, and traps are set under every piece of furniture that the cat or dog can't get underneath.

Mice have actually eaten fabric off the covered buttons of an expensive jacket and chewed holes in Pepsi bottles that then drained all over the floor.

There were mice here before I had chickens, and there will always be mice here. There is no way to seal the entire house, and even with four cats in the basement to discourage them, mice find their way in.

My best success has been with using the Tomcat snap traps, baited with attractant, and the Kness no-kill traps -- although effective, I then had to figure out what to do with live mice.

I sympathize with your all-out attempts to get rid of your pests, and I hope you are successful.

 

[theoldchick]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/slredirec...1315659&id=4701007958608957&widgetName=sp_atf

 

[CluckerFamily]

My farmhouse is over 100 years old. I bought the house after a year of vacancy. I am so glad the owners let me come into the house a couple weeks before signing on the house and each day to set up mouse traps and reset the ones that caught a mouse. Mice are a give in the basement, garage and walls.
Even though they get into the walls, they get there some way and will come out in search of food. Fill any holes you see. My mice will come into the house through the corner of the outside of the house where the siding edge is, so I stuffed steel wool in the siding corner gap on the bottom.
I have mouse traps in my garage and basement. I use cashews as bait. It is the only thing that works for me. And the cashew can be forced into the mouse trap so that the one nut lasts a long time after killing many mice.

 

[Chickassan]

I just put out a stainless steel bowl of peanut oil about 3/4 full and let them find there own demise.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Tamper proof bait box with chunx bait.

There is a slow acting and fast poison. Once you are inundated I believe it's better to use the slow acting. This prevents dead rodents laying about all over and possible secondary poisoning. The slow acting will be stored in rodent homes, new generation will be eating it. Though this bait takes days longer it will kill all generations and the rodents will die in their homes.

Look at the following link, note the type of outdoor bait box, usually have plastic key to unlock. Also note the yellow label Tomcat bait chunx. That's the slow acting and what I suggest for initial use. Once the rodent plague is taken care of and the original 4lbs pail is gone switch to the fast acting chunx. This will kill rodents as they attempt to move into area. Before they can establish and exponentially multiply.

I'd talk with the owner of the property with poultry and ask them to use the product as the rodents have become a nuisance. If they wont then talk to neighbor on other side of them. You and they should put out two bait boxes each. That would stop the infestation, limit it to the irresponsible poultry owners house and property.

https://www.pest-control-products.net/2619/reviews/rodent-poison-bait/amp/

 

[mowin]

I swear by the walk the plank 5gal pail method. I make my own with a metal coat hanger and soda bottle. I use antifreeze instead of water. And yes, it's not where my dogs can get to it.

 

[Geckolady]

I've had some success with melting Tootsie Rolls and molding them onto the lever of the snap traps. They like the sweet stuff, and once it hardens, the trap stays baited until it's snapped enough times that the impact causes the candy to crack and fly off.

Since rodents come straight out of the bowels of h*ll, you won't stop them completely. I got 4 cats that were so feral the cat rescuers could not tame them. I named the hissing, spitting monsters after hurricanes and let them loose downstairs. Now I have blood stains in the concrete downstairs, but there are still rodents down there. I can tell by the droppings. But at least the evil cats make their lives miserable.